Gaming Life in China #13

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In the wake of E3's demise, our full ChinaJoy report.

By Gavin Frankle

Whether through sublime contrivance or poetic fluke, in the span of just three days ChinaJoy was able to showcase the very best and worst of the Chinese videogame industry. And then there were the games. Submerged beneath the crushing waves of sound that flooded the exhibition halls were booths representing (with one or two exceptions) every major and upcoming company involved in the local game market. Booths housed game kiosks, played host to all manner of stage activities, and offered the two main reasons most of the public seems to attend the show: free swag and booth babes (more politely referred to as 'showgirls' round these parts). Both of which were in copious supply.

The sight that greets attendees first thing in the morning.

Spanning three halls with a combined area of around 33,500sqm, ChinaJoy is a sizeable undertaking. The likes of Shanda, EA, Netease, The9, Tencent, Sega, Webzen and 9You occupied much of Hall 1, flaunting their wares amidst a cacophony of noise that could at best be described as unpleasant and at worst... well, this is a family-friendly site. Hall 2, while no less noisy than the first, featured the likes of SCEI, Konami, Wemade, T2CN and OptiSP. Coca-Cola laid claim to the majority of Hall 3, and thankfully so for anyone making the two short, but stifling treks into the searing outdoors in order to get there - McDonalds stalls could be found dotted around each hall and refreshment tents were erected to bolster the other restaurant options on site.

Click for larger maps.

I'll admit to thinking that the large walkway spaces between booths were entirely unnecessary. But in my defense, that was on Friday, a full 24 hours before a throbbing mass of humanity clogged every artery and consumed every last drop of oxygen and cool air in the center. I've yet to come across official attendance figures, but I would guess that over the three days at least a bajillion people shuffled along the halls of the SNIEC. And at least half of those dropped their sodas... at least, I hope that's what I was walking through.

But enough prattle! The show is all about games, booths and babes (not necessarily in that order), and that's exactly what we're going to give you (in precisely that order) in the sections that follow.